View from Seed

OCTOBER 11, 2022

The first is that we are welcoming Stephanie Palmeri as the newest Partner at the firm. Stephanie is someone that we have known for almost a decade and have respected deeply as a co-investor and collaborator at Uncork. Specifically: – We are high-conviction, hands-on lead investors.

Cofounder 156

Cofounder San Francisco Portfolio Limited Partner 156

David Teten

FEBRUARY 3, 2014

Now that I’ve been an institutional VC for a few years, I thought it would be helpful to revisit our findings from the investor side of the table. The venture capital industry is continuing its evolution from an upside-down pyramid (typically 3-10 Partners, plus some administrative support) to a traditional hierarchical pyramid.

Private Equity 114

Private Equity Venture Capital Technical Review Equity 114

ReadWriteStart

FEBRUARY 19, 2020

The government creates programs to help entrepreneurs. In 2012, the national government created the programs iNNpulsa and apps.co, both promote innovation , business, and technological developments in Colombia by providing funds and coaching programs to promising entrepreneurs. Ayenda Rooms.

Colombia 146

Colombia America Technical Review Startup 146

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 7, 2015

One of my favorite entrepreneur-Twitterer weighed in, “You want to keep tapping into their collective intelligence so you keep saying ‘Thank you for the feedback’ and they keep sending it,” Ms. I actually think a strong lead with some well-placed and experienced angels is the right mix. All of my partners at Upfront do.

Cap Table 150

Cap Table Cofounder Silicon Valley Startup 150

The Next Web

OCTOBER 7, 2013

In a CTO Salary and Equity trends report by Safire Partners, it finds non-founder equity compensation to settle out below 2 percent. You might assume the lead investor wants a 20 percent stake and 15 percent option pool each time there’s a Series ‘Blah’ every 12 to 18 months, but this is admittedly too simple.

Engineer 129

Engineer Dilution Option Pool Vesting 129

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 27, 2011

This is where your business starts to incur real costs—but it’s also where entrepreneurs don’t like to be short term “sellers” of their equity. They’re hesitant to raise money—selling equity to investors—when things look great. Major league baseball players have trainers.

Dilution 104

Dilution Equity Hiring Partner 104

NZ Entrepreneur

AUGUST 4, 2021

Byron van Vugt from NZ Growth Capital Partners explains. For investors, capital raises provide an opportunity to invest in a company’s ambitions. Lead investors and term sheets. Now that you’ve got investors undergoing due diligence, you must secure a lead investor. Legal documentation.

Technical Review 68

Technical Review Software Review Founder Due Diligence 68

View from Seed

AUGUST 26, 2015

Just yesterday, Adam Medros , SVP of Global Product at TripAdvisor and an entrepreneur advisor for NextView, just asked about when the next event will be. And although this is written for angel investors, I think entrepreneurs can only benefit by increasing their knowledge around these investors and hope you’ll continue reading if that’s you.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Angel Investor Software Review Silicon Valley 120

View from Seed

AUGUST 26, 2015

Just yesterday, Adam Medros , SVP of Global Product at TripAdvisor and an entrepreneur advisor for NextView, just asked about when the next event will be. And although this is written for angel investors, I think entrepreneurs can only benefit by increasing their knowledge around these investors and hope you’ll continue reading if that’s you.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Angel Investor Software Review Silicon Valley 120

View from Seed

JANUARY 27, 2021

We believe that this fund is the perfect size for us to be the best possible partners to early-stage entrepreneurs today. My partners and I feel lucky to have been able to practice the craft of early-stage investing during these years of tremendous growth and opportunity.

LP 411

LP Early Stage Seed Stage Venture Capital 411

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 5, 2014

We’re backed by Bessemer Venture Partners, Silver Lake Partners, and individual investors like Ron Conway, among others. Prabhdeep Singh: Ask any entrepreneur about their most valuable resource when they’re making tough decisions, and you’ll hear the name of someone, not something.

New York 114

New York Technical Review Networking Advisory Board 114

Genuine VC

JANUARY 15, 2015

In other words, as much as feasible, to gate all of the VC discussions so that they’re progressing along essentially the same pace – with the goal to receive multiple terms sheets near simultaneously in order to best select the best offer and best partner, with full information. But reality doesn’t always play out as neatly.

Lead Investor 100

Lead Investor Term Sheet Venture Capital Portfolio 100

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 3, 2011

One of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make is not understanding the relationship they have with their investors. Steve, we thought we’d tell you this before the board meeting, but both our firms are going to pass on leading your next round.” At times they confuse VC’s with their friends. Lets Go to Lunch. I was speechless.

San Francisco 333

San Francisco Silicon Valley Limited Partner Venture Capital 333

Lightspeed Venture Partners

APRIL 12, 2016

The partners here had made many great investments in consumer companies before then — companies that resulted in successful IPOs like BlueNile and eHealth in the late 90s. For that reason I was thrilled when Aaron Batalion joined as my partner in November. In addition, Jon Steinberg has also joined us, as a Venture Partner.

Technical Cofounder 60

Technical Cofounder Cofounder SCRUM Committed Capital 60

View from Seed

OCTOBER 21, 2014

In short, more and more entrepreneurs are signaling their price expectations earlier in their seed fundraise process. In theory, there are three levels of pricing for an entrepreneur to potentially signal to a prospective investor: 1. And as my partner Rob Go likes to say, “Time kills all deals.”).

Valuation 336

Valuation Founder Seed Stage Angel Investor 336

View from Seed

FEBRUARY 26, 2020

In previous blog posts I’ve written about the two main approaches to building a seed round syndicate – the subscription method (where an entrepreneur presets a structure with a convertible note or SAFE and recruits investors who subscribe to the round, all without a term-driving lead investor) and a term-driving lead investor approach.

Syndicate 257

Syndicate Syndication Lead Investor Venture Capital 257

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

Lead investors are few. Leads that are true force-multipliers are exceedingly rare. Although seed funding has exploded since we started Nextview, we continue to hear the refrain from founders that there are tons of investors that will pile-in on a round that is coming together, but that lead investors are few and far between.

North America 36

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 36

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 18, 2017

The opening keynote session will define directions on Aligning the Role of Government Policymakers, Incumbent Banks, FinTech Innovators, Investors, Multilateral Agencies, MNOs and the Private Sector to Create a Dynamic Ecosystem for FinTech in Africa.

Africa 76

Africa Ethiopia Elevator Pitch Technical Review 76

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2011

I was saying that I was happy it was all out in the open because I felt at least everybody could now understand the issues & opportunities from the perspectives of angels, entrepreneurs and VCs. Jody didn’t exactly have an easy time fund raising because he’s not one of the prototypical Silicon Valley funded entrepreneurs.

Valuation 292

Valuation Deal Flow Lead Investor Cofounder 292

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 5, 2011

We’re almost always the lead investor and usually the most active, too. Become a resource for entrepreneurs to have access to the lawyers, accountants, real-estate professionals and other people with whom our entrepreneurs work. Demonstrate the deep relationships we have with the CEO’s with whom we work.

Early Stage 260

Early Stage Lead Investor Portfolio Partner 260

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 14, 2010

This is the second article in a series on what it takes to be a great angel investor (and why this should matter to entrepreneurs). I like to invest where I have a personally strong connection with the entrepreneur and/or a strong intuition on the market from prior experience. I see this all of the time in financial services.

Angel Investor 288

Angel Investor Deal Flow Viral Algorithm 288

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 6, 2015

She had so much insight to share that we broke the interview into two parts, 1) Corporate Venture Capital and more broadly, 2) How the Fortune 500 Can Buy, Invest and Partner with the Innovation Economy (coming soon). . Entrepreneurs today expect more than just capital from their investors. They invest alongside financial VCs.

Venture Capital 60

Venture Capital Balance Sheet Technical Review Portfolio 60

Genuine VC

JULY 10, 2012

There are essentially two distinct basic strategies for startup entrepreneurs to raise a seed round of capital: Subscription approach – An entrepreneur sets a structure (usually a convertible note) and recruits individual angel investors who subscribe to the round, all without a term-driving lead investor.

Syndicate 207

Syndicate Syndication Seed Stage Portfolio 207

A Crowded Space

OCTOBER 3, 2018

Very shortly after I joined, Greg Gretsch (now my partner at Jackson Square Ventures) co-led oDesk’s Series A along with Venky Ganesan (partner at Menlo Ventures and lead investor in Rev.com). Realistically for entrepreneurs, no matter how hard you try, you’re going to make hiring mistakes.

San Francisco 60

San Francisco Bangladesh Ukraine Philippines 60

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 13, 2018

If you’re raising a round where a new lead investor would invest $5 million the VC fund must have no less than $100 million and if you’re looking for them to write $15–20 million as the lead their fund realistically should be at least $400 million. Remember, I was an entrepreneur for 10 years before a VC).

Term Sheet 332

Term Sheet Due Diligence Campaign Sales 332

Pascal's View

JULY 9, 2017

Andrew Krowne and I recently co-wrote an article in Tech Crunch , Why SAFE Notes Are Not Safe for Entrepreneurs. At its core, this issue points to the lack of understanding about the importance of post-money valuation by both entrepreneurs and investors.

Post-Money Valuation 49

Post-Money Valuation Valuation Cap Table Covenant 49

YoungUpstarts

MAY 1, 2020

by Ash Rust , founder and managing partner of Sterling Road. Money is constantly on the mind of any entrepreneur: how to raise it, where to invest it, and how to make more of it. Given that mindset, it’s only natural that most entrepreneurs jump at the first chance they get to secure early-stage startup funding.

Early Stage 165

Early Stage Security Angel Investor Lead Investor 165

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 30, 2018

One of the hardest things about the fund-raising process for entrepreneurs is that you’re trying to raise money from people who have “asymmetric information.” As an entrepreneur it can feel as intimidating as going to buy a car where the dealer knows the price of every make & model of a car and you’re guessing at how much to pay.

Valuation 324

Valuation Post-Money Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Cofounder 324

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 14, 2009

And what I mostly want to do is make entrepreneurs aware that they have nearly as much power as a real board member so you may have more people making decisions at board meeting than you thought you would. This is the real board position that entrepreneurs should concern themselves with. What exactly is a board observer? in a company.

Advisory Board 215

Advisory Board Strategic Investors Venture Capital Later Stage 215

Feld Thoughts

AUGUST 2, 2010

They are: Fred Wilson: Lead Investors, Dipshit Companies, and Funding Every Entrepreneur. And importantly, Mark encourages all entrepreneurs to make sure they understand a VC’s seed strategy before taking money, which I strongly agree with. Mark Suster: Understanding a VC’s Seed Funding Policy is Critical.

Angel Investor 152

Angel Investor Cofounder Syndication Syndicate 152

www.readwriteweb.com

MARCH 7, 2011

Since the angel network was created, transparent angel investing has exploded and entrepreneurs from any background can get funded. Bryce Roberts , a partner at O?Reilly Quickly, startup investing is looking more like the public markets, and power is quickly shifting to the entrepreneur from the investors. startupcto

Technical Review 50

Technical Review Due Diligence Startup Angel Investor 50

View from Seed

JANUARY 7, 2020

About a year ago, my partner David Beisel talked about how seed fundraising is no longer a local game , and that the best entrepreneurs seek out the best investors for them outside of their home market. That being said, it’s much easier to put a seed round together when you have a local lead who can help catalyze the round.

New York 207

New York Boston Marketing Aggregator 207

Genuine VC

JULY 30, 2012

Sharing these expectations early in potential lead investor discussions fundamentally qualifies the conversations, but it also runs the risk of prematurely losing a potential financing partner or reducing options to maximize a financing process outcome. Above market. But, also by definition, that just can’t be the case.

Valuation 136

Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Angel Investor Syndication 136

Feld Thoughts

JUNE 2, 2010

I wasn’t able to make it to Boston yesterday for the Angel Boot Camp as I was running around NYC with the CEO of a company I invested in last week introducing him to a bunch of potential customers and partners. My long time friend and co-angel investor Will Herman wrote a post titled Angel Investing that summarized some of his advice.

Angel Investor 167

Angel Investor Boston Due Diligence Cofounder 167

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 29, 2016

Most entrepreneurs I know are so passionate about their new idea that they are surprised when family and friends don’t line up to invest in their new venture. Yet they tend to ignore this problem, and move on quickly to professional investors. Talking loudly is not enough. Outline the financial options and ask for the close.

Elevator Pitch 151

Elevator Pitch Exit Strategy Angel Investor Equity 151

Hearpreneur

AUGUST 27, 2023

We asked entrepreneurs and business owners about how they create the space to think, strategize and grow their organizations. This person conducts regular one-on-one meetings with the chairman and lead investor. Here are the responses. #1- Thanks to Thomas Samuels, Cardinal Expo ! #7-

Entrepreneur 118

Entrepreneur Australia Lead Investor Management 118

Hippoland

AUGUST 9, 2016

One question that seed investors love to ask is if you have a lead investor in your seed round. I’ve written before about what every entrepreneur needs to clarify when answering this question. But once you figure out why an investor is asking, tactically speaking, what do you do?

Lead Investor 48

Lead Investor Term Sheet Due Diligence Convertible Security 48